


Of Course (a lie through the teeth)

by MadameDeBergerac



Category: Edgar Allan Poe's Murder Mystery Dinner Party (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Marriage of Convenience, What-If, basically the Bad Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-26
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2021-01-03 11:10:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21178445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadameDeBergerac/pseuds/MadameDeBergerac
Summary: "She dwelt alone/In a world of moan/And her soul was a stagnant tide/When the fair and gentle Annabel/became his blushing bride..."





	Of Course (a lie through the teeth)

“Are you happy with me, Annabel?” Eduardo Dantes asked her as they sat at their wedding reception in the shadow of a towering frothy white cake, half-listening to one of his banker friends give a speech about their “whirlwind romance”. She looked into his wide toothy grin and could only think of Edgar’s bashful, eye-brightening, chin-tucked-against his chin smile when she complimented his latest short story…

“Are you happy with me, Annabel?” Eduardo asked her as they settled into their new house in the States, far far away from her old kingdom by the sea. She traced a hand over the cold tile and stark stainless steel of the counters and could only think of the warm stone of Edgar’s fireplace…

“Are you happy with me, Annabel?” Ed asked her as they strolled down the sidewalk of their new neighborhood, having insisted on carrying her parasol for her to shield her from the glowing sun. She glanced at the passing trees and gardens, all perfectly manicured with no hint of a single sparrow or aphid, the flowers trimmed to plastic perfection, and could only remember nights spent sitting in Edgar’s old picture window overlooking the footbridge and listening for the call of larks and ravens…

“Are you happy with me, Annabel?” Eddie asked her as she sat on the side of their bed, and she could hear the crinkle of his perfectly creased trousers as he sat down beside her. She felt his dry palm against her shoulder through her nightgown and could only think of Edgar’s gentle fingers shyly threading through her hair until she would catch him…

And she turned around and didn’t tell him what was in her heart. She only ever smiled, forced her mind into the here and now, and said, “Of course I do.”


End file.
